Each Betrayal Begins With Trust
by SageK
Summary: The aftermath of 2x08 begins. mentions Erica/Hobbes, will be Jack/Erica
1. Chapter 1

This is for all the Jack/Erica fans who are disgruntled by the events of 2x08. I still have hope that J/E is the endgame! For the purpose of this fic, I'm assuming about 2 weeks have passed since 2x06.

* * *

Comfort sex.

What a freaking cliché.

That was the first coherent thought Erica Evans had as she awoke. Hobbes had left hours earlier, thankfully seeming to understand what had between them hadn't been…more than it was.

Lust, fear, despair, loneliness, grief and a need to connect to another human being, even if just on a basic, physical level…it had been all of that. Not something to feel guilty over, but perhaps a little uncomfortable if one of them had more emotional investment in the encounter than the other.

It was why the Bureau discouraged fraternization within teams.

She hoped things wouldn't be too awkward.

After stripping the bed, a shower and a fresh set of clothes, Erica made her way down the stairs and flinched at the sight of the alcohol sitting on the counter. Pouring herself a cup of coffee, she retrieved her phone and checked for missed calls. There was an email from Chris, asking how she was doing.

Jack hadn't called her back.

He always called back.

Yesterday had not been a good one for them. Maybe he was right to think that she was acting out of grief and rage, not taking into consideration the loss of innocent lives. He'd tried to reach out to her, to act as a moral compass and voice a different opinion and she'd shut him down hard, demanding he follow her lead.

The thing was, she was fairly certain he would have done so in the end, but she just hadn't had the energy to get into a discussion about it.

Hitting redial, she listened to the ring tone for several seconds before someone answered. By Hobbes.

"Hello?" It was quite a polite greeting from him.

"Hey," she replied, hoping they could just be adults and not have the typical morning after weirdness. "Um, did I call…."

"Jack's phone," Hobbes replied, tone a bit curt, but nothing out of the ordinary. "He's not here. His phone was on his cot, but he didn't come in last night."

"What?" That couldn't be good. "He left his phone."

In this day and age, no one intentionally left their phone behind when they went out.

"Yes."

Damn.

* * *

During the drive to Hobbes's basement, Erica contacted Chad, Sid and even St. Josephine's in an attempt to locate Jack, but he wasn't anywhere to be found. That was bad.

Clearly she wasn't the only one concerned, because Chad was arriving as she pulled up and, upon descending into the basement, they found a freaked out Sid chattering at Hobbes.

"Do you think some of Anna's minions grabbed him?" Sid was saying as he paced the room. "I mean, if they've figured out who we are, things could get bad…damn, we should have some way of tracking each other…besides the obvious cell phones…"

Hobbes offered her a nod and small smile in greeting, the latter of which earned a raised brow from Chad. She returned the nod, a bit stiffly, hoping he'd let the matter drop.

"Look, I know we're all on edge," Hobbes said, trying to talk Sid down from another panicked outburst. "Maybe he went out for a drink and…made a friend."

Erica glanced over at Jack's cot, his crosses and Bible. "You think he went out and let himself get picked up by a stranger?"

That didn't exactly sound like something Jack would do.

Hobbes's eyes bored into hers. "Everyone deserves a bit of comfort now and again."

Sid and Chad exchanged glances, picking up on the subtext but not really understanding. "Okay," Chad said slowly, breaking the awkward silence. "Maybe he's with a friend then. Family? An Army buddy?"

Shrugging, Erica said, "Outside of us, I don't know who he'd go to."

"Let me see what I can find." Sid tossed himself into a chair in front of the computer and his fingers flew across the keys. After a minute, he sat back and said, "Okay, this is what I got on Jack…He's originally from Minnesota…Huh, never met anyone from there…Masters in History and Theology…Priest…Army Chaplain…Purple Heart, Bronze Star, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal and Iraq Campaign Medal…Don't really know what that means, but it sounds impressive….Family…a niece here in the city. That's it. I can try to hack into his cell records, see who he's been calling.

Though Sid didn't know what Jack's array of medals meant, Erica did and Hobbes clearly did as well. But that wasn't pressing at the moment. She jotted down the address of the niece that Sid had found and said, "Let's see if…."

"Did anyone check the church two blocks over?" Chad asked, then shrugged when they all turned to look at him. "I just mean, before we go storming over to some strange woman's home, I think we should at least check it out."

Erica wondered why she hadn't thought of that.

"Worth a shot," Hobbes conceded with a nod, but he still grabbed an extra handgun and tucked it under his coat. He tapped Sid on the shoulder, "Keep at those records, just in case."

Just in case. That seemed like a good plan.

* * *

_"O Lord, Jesus Christ, Redeemer and Savior, forgive my sins, just as You forgave Peter's denial and those who crucified You. Count not my transgressions, but, rather, my tears of repentance. Remember not my iniquities, but, more especially, my sorrow for the offenses I have committed against You. I long to be true to Your Word, and pray that You will love me and come to make Your dwelling place within me. I promise to give You praise and glory in love and in service all the days of my life."_

_"Lord Jesus Christ, I ask today to forgive everyone in my life. I know that You will give me the strength to forgive and I thank You that You love me more than I love myself and want my happiness more than I desire it for myself."_

_"Lord, forgive me for my sins, faults and failings, and for all that is bad in myself or that I think is bad. I reject all that superstition and choose You alone as my Lord and Savior. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit."_

_"O God, mercy and forgiveness_

_are Yours by nature and by right._

_Receive our humble petitions._

_Though we are bound tightly by the chain of our sins,_

_set us free by the power of Your great mercy."_

_"Amen."_

Chad had been right. Jack was at the small chapel, kneeling in the empty pews, quiet voice echoing in the large room. His head was bowed and hands clasped and he hadn't reacted when they entered. Out of respect, Erica had held the others back, allowing him to finish his prayers, but after the amen, she took a step forward.

Only to be brought up short by the start of a new prayer.

_Salve Regína, Mater misericórdiæ; Vita dulcédo, et spes nostra, salve. Ad te Clamámus éxsules fílii Evæ; Ad te Suspirámus, geméntes et flentes in hac lacrimárum valle_…."

"He's been here since before I got in."

An elderly little woman had crept up behind them on soft soled shoes. She held an old fashioned feather duster in one hand and turned her gaze toward Jack. "Father Connolly said he was here at five when he came to light a candle."

It was past 9. Hobbes had probably returned to the basement around 1 am and she'd called Jack and missed him at 10:30...had he been here the whole time?

"What's he saying?" she heard Chad whisper to the older woman and Erica found that she was curious about that as well.

The woman eyed them suspiciously for a moment, then said, "I've heard several rosaries, the Prayer for the Forgiveness of Sins, Prayer for the War, Morning Prayer of the Soldier, A Prayer for the Preservation of Faith, Prayer in the Time of Conflict, Prayers for Victims of War, for Leaders, for Friends and Loved Ones, for the Dead, Those Who Mourn, Combatants…Some in English, some Latin."

The older woman shrugged as they stared at her. "Like I said, he's been here a while."

With that she bustled off, muttering about people interrupting 'the nice young man's prayers'.

Now that she knew Jack was, in fact, safe, Erica did hesitate to interrupt him. They didn't have anything urgent to do at the moment and she had the feeling he'd somehow know what had gone down between herself and Hobbes the night before.

It was silly.

"Gimme his phone," Chad said and Erica was so surprised that she forked it over.

The reported walked into the church as she and Hobbes took seats in the back, watching. Chad stepped into the pew beside Jack and the former priest turned to acknowledge him. They were too far away to hear what was being said clearly, but Chad handed Jack his phone before settling down on the bench.

Jack turned to look back at them and made a hand gesture that clearly said, "Just a minute," before returning to his prayers.

"See," Hobbes said, "No reason to worry. He just wanted to be in his comfort zone for a bit."

If he'd been there more than eight hours, Erica considered that to be more than a bit, but that would wait for later.

* * *

Jack's phone records turned out to reveal nothing new. Basically the only people he ever called were St. Josephine's, Erica, Hobbes, Chad, Ryan or his niece. He'd never even called Sid. Poor guy clearly didn't get out much.

On the table, Sid's own phone buzzed and he grabbed it up eagerly.

Damn, just a text from one of his roommates.

_Micah is yelling at the squirrels again. Random co-eds are afraid. Should I try to get him indoors before they call the campus rent a cop?_

He really needed to get his own place. _YES!_, he texted back, then paused, _I'm assuming you got it on video_.

_Duh. Also, I'm the drunkest dude in the tree._

Dumbass. With a sigh, Sid tossed his phone back onto the table and it slid off, skittering off the side and onto the floor where it slid under Hobbes's bed.

Lovely. The mercenary probably had the thing booby trapped.

Cautiously, Sid crouched beside the bed and felt around for the missing phone and was unhappy not to find it quickly. Lifting up the edge of the blanket, he peered under and saw the phone beside a stack of small boxes. Happily, he grabbed the device, then cursed as his wrist jostled a box, causing it to tip over .

Squeezing his eyes shut, he hoped there wasn't anything super explosive in the box.

After a moment, discovering that he was still alive, Sid opened an eye and looked at what had fallen from the box. It looked almost like a packet of birth control, but the lid was open and there was something blinking inside.

Curiosity getting the better of him, Sid picked up the…whatever it was and inspected it. The small, oval disc inside had a glowing red stripe down the center. He'd never seen anything like it before.

The door opened and there were soft footsteps on the stairs. Sid turned on his butt to see who it was, hoping it wouldn't be Hobbes, 'cause he wasn't ready to die and he was sure the big man wouldn't take kindly to Sid's snooping.

Fortunately, it wasn't Hobbes. In fact, he'd never met the lovely young woman who was presently staring at him curiously. After a moment, he recognized her as Lisa, Anna's daughter and a Fifth Column ally. Another really hot woman who was a lizard underneath. Weird.

"Hi," he said scrambling up from the floor and hoping he didn't look like too much the fool. "I'm Sidney Miller. New guy on the team."

She nodded and replied, "I'm Lisa. Erica has spoken kindly of you."

"Really?" It was always nice to be acknowledged. "You too, I mean, you're like a secret agent up on the ship…."

"Why do you have one of our detonators?"

Sid glanced down at the device in his hand, suddenly extremely uncomfortable. It was a detonator and who knew how many explosive devices Hobbes had hidden around this place. He had heard jack muttering about C4 in one of the cupboards. "It's a detonator? V technology?"

"Yes," Lisa said, stepping forward and touching the device to make the red glow disappear. "It's deactivated now."

"Thank you," he breathed in relief, then looked at the device in his hand. "Why would Hobbes have this?"

Lisa held out her hand and said, "May I?"

Passing her the detonator, Sid watched as she did something, then frowned. "This is odd. It's been used…Oh no."

Her big eyes had grown troubled and her pretty face paled. The scientist in him screamed to know how that happened if it wasn't her real skin, but he contained himself to ask, "What?"

"This was used two weeks ago," she said bleakly, then shook her head. "I heard mother and Thomas speaking about using a human asset to take out Cohen, but I didn't know who…."

Explosion. Two weeks ago. Eli Cohen. Damn. "When Erica's ex got killed," Sid breathed. "Oh, man, this is not good. Not good at all. I mean, Erica's been understandably grrrargh! since it happened and now this is so not going to sit well with her."

Features grave, Lisa nodded then looked around. "I was hoping to speak with Erica. She wasn't at her house and I thought she might be here…."

"They went looking for Jack…." His phone buzzed and he looked down.

_Jack at church. BBS - Chad_

"…and they'll be back soon."

"All right," she said and took a seat in one of the chairs. "I suppose we'll get our answers then."

Sid nodded, hoping that he appeared as composed as the V princess did, but doubting his success.

After all, they were going to have to confront Hobbes about the detonator and the big mercenary was scary as hell.

Although, he'd be willing to bet Erica could be equally scary, especially if fueled by the kind of rage that was probably going to come from the whole 'detonator in Hobbes's stuff' reveal.

Sid really missed the days when all he had to contend with were idiotic roommates and the cutthroat halls of academia.

TBC….

* * *

Comments, pretty please? They help fuel the muses and keep me writing!


	2. Chapter 2

"Look, I'll take my phone next time, but I needed some time alone."

Erica and Hobbes had spent the short ride back from the church chastising him for leaving his phone in the basement. Well, it was mostly Erica, but Hobbes added his two cents occasionally. Chad just looked vaguely uncomfortable and Jack couldn't figure out why.

"You could have left a note," Erica said from the front seat and then she blinked as though realizing the fact that she'd made a more than vaguely patronizing statement.

Shaking his head, Jack just hopped out of the car, or at least hopped as best he could after spending so many hours on his knees. It was more like a pained slide and he planned on icing his aching joints once he got some privacy.

The stairs were not pleasant, but any thoughts of his throbbing limbs fled when he saw the two people standing by the computers. Sid wasn't too much of a surprise, but Lisa had never come down to their HQ before. That wasn't what gave him pause though.

Both of them looked scared, angry and vaguely nauseous. Not the most pleasant expressions by any means and it served only to make them both look even younger than they usually appeared.

"Lisa?" Erica said, stepping towards the girl, concern in her eyes. "What are you doing here? Is everything all right?"

The girl looked from Erica to Hobbes, who was hovering behind her shoulder, then over at Sid, who touched her arm and began creeping towards the side of the room Jack and Chad had drifted to. Lisa allowed him to lead her, but her eyes were refocused on Hobbes and her odd mix of expressions settled firmly on anger.

Holding up a small object, she demanded, "Why do you have this?"

It seemed an innocuous thing, Jack thought. Actually, it looked a bit like the compact he could remember his mother carrying in her purse when he was a boy.

But clearly, it was not a make up case.

Hobbes tensed, his shoulders squaring and the tendons in his neck popping out in to prominence. He knew what the object was and he was not happy to see it in Lisa's hand. Erica was puzzled and she took a step forward.

"What is that?" she asked, peering at the object for a moment and then turning back to Hobbes. "What is it?"

The mercenary looked a bit trapped, and Lisa continued, "This is a detonator. One of V design. It can be used to trigger any explosive within 100 yards. Did you know, Mr. Hobbes, that this keeps a record of each time it's used? And this particular detonator has only been used once."

Hobbes finally reacted. "It's not mine. You're the one who said it's V tech."

He was lying. Everyone in the room could tell, even Lisa, new to reading emotions as she was. Sid, not generally the most confrontational person, said, "I found it in one of those boxes under your bed."

Focusing a glare at the scientist, Hobbes said, "Why were you going through my things?"

"I wasn't!" Sid replied defensively. "I dropped my phone and it slid under…not the point! Why do you have a detonator that was used to set off explosives two weeks ago?"

"The day I heard my mother and Thomas discussing using an asset to do their dirty work," Lisa added, her voice shaking. "The day Tyler's father died."

Erica's head whipped around to stare at Hobbes in disbelief. "Why do you have that?" she demanded sharply, suspicious but hoping her assumption (all their assumptions) would prove wrong.

"Obviously, someone planted it." He turned to Jack. "You said Ryan survived the explosion, yeah?"

Jack nodded, but he somehow doubted that was the case.

"Mother ordered Ryan killed," Lisa said briskly. "He has outlived his usefulness to her. One of the things I wished to speak to you all about was him. He's on our side once again."

_Oh, please God, for Erica's sake, let them be wrong._

He had a feeling God would not be answering that particular prayer.

"Hobbes," Erica said slowly, staring at the mercenary with penetrating intensity, "Tell me you didn't have anything to do with this."

She couldn't bring herself to put into words the 'this' she was talking about. Killing Eli and who knew how many others. Joe's death included. Sending Tyler running into Anna's waiting arms.

"I…," Hobbes began, then he cleared his throat. "They have my Sarah. I told you about her, Erica. I thought she died, but they have her…."

It was like someone punched Erica in the stomach. She stepped back, face paling to rapidly and a slew of emotions flitting over her pale features.

"Oh…Fuck," Sid muttered, accurately summing up everyone's thoughts.

Hobbes glared, but, in taking his eyes off of Erica, he made a mistake. Shocked and betrayed or not, she was Erica Evans and she lashed out, balled fist connecting with Hobbes's jaw. His head turned at the impact, but he didn't fall. He caught her fist before the second blow landed and she didn't even bother trying to yank free from his grasp.

She pulled her gun…at the same moment Hobbes drew his.

To echo Sid's earlier sentiment, fuck.

No one could accuse Sid of lacking survival instincts. As soon as the guns came out, he snagged Lisa's arm again and tugged her into the shelter of an alcove. Jack shoved Chad in after them, grabbing a handgun from where it was taped under the table top and moving into position to back Erica's play.

One of the things Jack had learned after moving into the basement was that Hobbes liked to have at least one weapon within arms reach at all times. He'd thought it a tad excessive, but now, when he needed a gun and his own was tucked away in his bag beneath his bed, he found the paranoia useful.

"You betrayed us," Erica's voice shook, but her hands were steady. "You killed Eli…Joe…and then you…."

Years in the clergy hadn't exactly provided Jack with a lot of first person experience in relationships, but he'd done more than his fair share of relationship counseling. He knew the sound of someone betrayed by a lover.

Jack could admit that he felt a stab of jealousy at that realization, but it was far overshadowed by an odd mix of anger and compassion.

Anger at Hobbes for turning on them, for killing their allies, for hurting Erica in so many ways and compassion for her. She'd lost so much and when she'd reached out for comfort, it had been to the man responsible for the latest of her personal tragedies.

"I waited," Hobbes ground out. "I waited until you were clear of the building. Cohen and his people weren't going to be taken alive, I had to take the chance that Sarah might be…."

"Save it!" Erica practically shouted. "What did you think was going to happen? Did you think Anna was going to let her go if you did her bidding?"

Hobbes immediately retorted, "You're hoping to get your kid back. How's this different?"

"I didn't kill anyone!"

"STOP!" Jack saw them jump when he shouted over both of them. He really wasn't sure what to say, but emotions running high mixed with drawn weapons was never a good thing. "This Mexican standoff bullshit isn't helping anyone!"

When you're a priest, or even used to be a priest, people don't expect you to swear. It always got a reaction. Hobbes blinked and Erica wrenched her arm from his grasp, stepping backwards towards Jack.

From inside the safety of the alcove, Chad said, "We can talk about this, right? I mean, everyone screws up sometimes…."

"Making a mistake is one thing," Erica stated and Jack could see the tension in her spine. "Lying to us, killing people and playing us for fools is something else entirely."

"Does Anna know Erica's Fifth Column?" Jack demanded. He was pretty sure he was already on the V queen's bad side, so he wasn't exactly worried about her opinion of him.

Eyes ticking from Erica to momentarily glance at him, Hobbes said, "No. They don't even know I'm involved with Fifth Column."

"I believe that to be true," Lisa said, peeking around the corner at them. "Mother wished to strike a blow at the Fifth Column in retaliation for Marcus and she saw an opportunity to kill you and Tyler's father, so she took it."

Apparently Anna had overestimated the size of the blow required to send Tyler running up to the V mother ship in a snit. Jack really did not like the boy, but kept his opinion to himself, for Erica's sake.

He wasn't sure if it was Lisa's words or the stress and trauma of the past few months (probably a combination of both), but the white knuckled grip on the anger that had been keeping Erica functioning (albeit in a strange way) failed her. Her shoulders slumped and her gun arm dropped and she sway a bit…before turning and simply walking up the stairs and out the door.

Jack blinked and found himself exchanging confused looks with Hobbes, then shook himself. They were still holding guns…but Hobbes was still aiming at the empty spot where Erica had been.

"Chad, Sid, Lisa," Jack said, shattering the confused silence. "Get your things and go."

The flurry of activity behind him and the feet on the stairs told him they'd quickly complied.

It was just the two of them now.

"So, you lot are going to forgive Ryan on Lisa's say so, but not me?" Hobbes asked, but even he sounded like he wasn't buying into that line of defense.

Heaving a sigh, Jack placed the weapon on a nearby counter and said, "I think you know that there's a big difference between what Ryan did and your actions."

Without waiting for Hobbes to react, Jack turned and gathered up the few of his belongings that weren't already tucked neatly into his bags. When he finished, he turned to the other man. Hobbes had settled onto one of the chairs and looked somewhat deflated himself.

"She won't forgive me for this, will she?" the mercenary asked, surprising Jack.

It made things both better and worse that Hobbes knew what he'd done was wrong, had known even as he'd done it.

"I can't speak for her," Jack said, shouldering his bags and walking towards the stairs. "The question is, do you forgive yourself?"

He wasn't above laying on a bit of a guilt trip, especially since it was deserved.

Once out the door, he saw Chad and Sid lingering by the former's car, Lisa standing nearby, clearly nervous. They were all looking over at Erica's, SUV…oh, okay, she was sitting in the drivers seat. Not moving. With a death grip on the wheel.

"She locked the doors," Lisa said, turning to face him. Her expression, and the hopeful looks on Chad and Sid's faces, read 'fix this!'.

Nodding, Jack approached Erica's car, wondering what he could possibly say. This wasn't something that could be fixed. All he could do was let her know that he'd be there for her.

It wasn't much, but it was all he could offer.

* * *

Comments, pretty please? They help fuel the muses and keep me writing!


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